Hello T.G., There is a second castle built near the lake of swans very near to Ludwig's Neuschwanstein castle. There is a connection between the two. The first one, whose name I can't remember right now, was built by King Ludwig's father. It is closest to the nearest village of Swangau. I have been there, been through both castles, and visited the city hall in Schwangau because my maiden name is SWANGO (Schwangau--Apparently there were no Schwangau families in the town of Schwangau that anyone could ever remember, and nothing on file!) We stayed in a great hotel right across from the castle which Ludiwg's father built, could gaze at it from our hotel window. We spent Christmas Eve there, watching the huge snowflakes drift across the window of the hotel dining area (they had a special German Christmas Eve dinner in the main area of the hotel), with the castle in the background. The year we were there Bavaria had the biggest snow in decades, trees and telephone lines were b! reaking form the weight of the snow. Everything looked like pictures from a fairytale book. The lake right next to the hotel, right below the first castle, was filled with swans. Ludwig's castle is higher up in the mountains, but visible from the hotel. One would hope that the village of Schwangau and most certainly those in trust of the castle (the government) would have some kind of info on the staff at both castles. I bought a book on Ludwig when I was there; he's a fascinating figure. I recall a connection with Wagner--was it that he was very charmed by Wagner's music and it influenced him in some way? Were the Wagner's you're researching related at all to the musician? That would be interesting. There's probably some info on the Internet about whomever is maintaining the castle now. There is also a major Bavarian Museum in Munich. I talked with someone there about tracing my great grandfather, who supposedly was a wallpaper designer in Munich--thought maybe they would have some info on guild records. The museum people were very helpful at that time. June Gibb

Hello, The other castle is Hohenschwangau. Here is its url: http://www.germanworld.com/hohen.htm Enjoy! Mary Ann > Hello T.G., > > There is a second castle built near the lake of swans very near to > Ludwig's Neuschwanstein castle. There is a connection between the > two. The first one, whose name I can't remember right now, was > built by King Ludwig's father. It is closest to the nearest > village of Swangau. I have been there, been through both castles, > and visited the city hall in Schwangau because my maiden name is > SWANGO (Schwangau--Apparently there were no Schwangau families in > the town of Schwangau that anyone could ever remember, and nothing > on file!) We stayed in a great hotel right across from the castle > which Ludiwg's father built, could gaze at it from our hotel > window. We spent Christmas Eve there, watching the huge > snowflakes drift across the window of the hotel dining area (they > had a special German Christmas Eve dinner in the main area of the > hotel), with the castle in the background. The year we were there > Bavaria had the biggest snow in decades, trees and telephone lines > were b! > reaking form the weight of the snow. Everything looked like pictures from > a fairytale book. The lake right next to the hotel, right below the first > castle, was filled with swans. Ludwig's castle is higher up in the > mountains, but visible from the hotel. One would hope that the village of > Schwangau and most certainly those in trust of the castle (the government) > would have some kind of info on the staff at both castles. I bought a > book on Ludwig when I was there; he's a fascinating figure. I recall a > connection with Wagner--was it that he was very charmed by Wagner's music > and it influenced him in some way? Were the Wagner's you're researching > related at all to the musician? That would be interesting. > > There's probably some info on the Internet about whomever is > maintaining the castle now. There is also a major Bavarian Museum in > Munich. I talked with someone there about tracing my great > grandfather, who supposedly was a wallpaper designer in > Munich--thought maybe they would have some info on guild records. The > museum people were very helpful at that time. > > June Gibb > > > ==== BAVARIA Mailing List ==== > Sister or Brother, > Can you spare $10 dollars to support Rootsweb? > http://www.rootsweb.com/rootsweb/how-to-subscribe.html#personal > Mary Ann Allen Fat Cat Collectibles http://fatcatcollectibles.com/